JOE DONOGHUE R.I.P.

Joe Donoghue was a very experienced theatrical actor and director when he directed his first musical, for the Marian Choral Society, in 1984. It was "Brigadoon", in which he had played as a schoolboy and he brought the directing and design values of "straight" theatre to musicals. He followed with "The Mikado" because he believed, rightly, that every musical society should experience the discipline of Gilbert and Sullivan; then just two years into his new job, he brought us the "Five Glorious Mysteries."

We presented "Jesus Christ Superstar" (the first to do so without Colm Wilkinson) in the Synod Hall of St. Mary's Cathedral, a beautiful building but with just four walls, a ceiling and a floor. The stage, or rather performance area was built from nothing — it was a two-storey cornucopia of entrances, exits and focus areas. The cross alone was a masterpiece of imagination — I remember the stage carpenter saying that Joe's idea couldn't work as he was looking at it from a prosaic, material angle. Joe saw it with a visionary eye and when it did appear, rising from the floor of the set, it brought gasps of astonishment from the audience at each of the eleven performances.Another magical moment came when the hitherto dull grey east window at the back was illuminated from without and illustrated the idea of resurrection in a breath taking way.

"West Side Story" was the follow up and it allowed Joe to marry his theatrical and literary passions. This production, done "in the round" was more Shakespearean than any "Romeo and Juliet" with the cast dwarfed by a giant scaffolding/tenement set used to particular effect in the dream sequence as, instead of the usual solo voice, we did an a capella SATB version of "Somewhere", in candlelight. It was a vicious, ugly, brutal but ultimately life-affirming presentation.

"Camelot" was the third show done in the Synod Hall and Joe came up with an extraordinary design of a multi-storeyed, multi-faceted set. One magic moment was at the end of Act I when Arthur reaches a resolution of his dilemma vis-a-vis Lancelot and Guenevere. Joe had him raise Excalibur on high where it was hit by a single beam of light that stunningly said everything about how good conquers evil and civilisation barbarism.

For "Zorba" in 1989 it was back to the hole-in-the-wall stage of St. Jarlath's but now there was no limit to Joe's imaginativeness — gone was the front curtain, gone was the uni-level playing area. This show illustrated Joe's genius for characterisation. Every character, named and unnamed, was an individual with "a past, a present and maybe a future". If, as is said, all politics is local then all drama is local too so this panorama of small-town Greece was small-town Ireland and everywhere.

"Godspell" completed the quintet of extraordinary presentations. Joe revelled in the challenge of this ensemble work where both cast and the audience had to work on "another level". Who else but Joe could make a few trestle tables and planks constitute so many settings?

By now Joe was in demand by Musical Societies all over the country — he returned for a fine "Fiddler" and a hilarious "Me and My Girl" — and he kept working with many theatre groups. He was adjudicator for both drama and musicals and did a Master's Degree on local playwright, M.J. Molloy. Joe was imaginative and probing in his designs, incisive and original in his interpretation of character and meticulous and patient in his work with casts.

He could get to the core of a play or show and get to the essence of any plot or character and bring them to an audience in an imaginative setting. His attention to detail — in set, costume, lighting, speech, gesture, presentation and grammar in the programme — was awesome and every rehearsal he had, with adults, or students in his beloved St. Jarlath's (where his greatest hour was "Les Miserables") was a Masterclass in theatre.

Just as his lights illumined many a point on stage, his work lit up the lives of tens of thousands in casts and audiences. He never directed 'Honk' but he turned many an ugly duckling into a swan on stage. To paraphrase what someone said on hearing of the death of George Gershwin - "Joe Donoghue is dead, but I don't have to believe it if I don't want to".

Noël Kirrane​ (taken from the 2005 Jekyll & Hyde show programme)​

NOËL KIRRANE R.I.P.

Noël Kirrane, our long-serving Musical Director, passed away prematurely in September (2008) following a short illness.

Fresh from college, Noël took over as Musical Director, Conductor and Répétiteur with the Marian Choral Society in 1978, for our production of The Student Prince. He wielded the baton for every show since, without repetition, and has widened the society's horizons both musically and theatrically.

As a group, both collectively and individually, we have lost the inspiration, driving force and backbone of The Marian Choral Society. During his time with M.C.S, Noël was encouraging, committed, dedicated and never selfish of his talents.

Noël lost many dear friends and members of the society over the years, but he always carried on, worked hard and gave willingly to the society of which he was justifiably proud.

​Noël's input to M.C.S, however, did not stop there. He could be seen sweeping out the hall, helping with the set, lighting or writing a few words for publicity and programme. Along with all of this he still found time to be welcoming to new members, have a laugh with our children and to enquire as to the well-being of our loved ones. These things clearly showed that Noël was not just a gifted musician and teacher, but also a warm and caring person -- in short a true friend.

Noël worked with almost every musical society in Connacht, along with various theatre groups. He took to the stage in St. Jarlath's College as a student and worked on every opera as Musical Director since he began teaching there in 1979. He was involved with the National Children's Choir for many years and was an Honorary Life Member of Ballinrobe Musical Society, with whom he worked for 15 years. Noël won numerous awards from AIMS, Tuam Town Commissioners and The Vatican, to name but a few.

All types of music were important to Noël, but sacred music held a special place in his heart. As choirmaster and organist to Tuam Cathedral Choir for almost 30 years, he brought the choir to a very high standard which they have maintained since his retirement.

In past programme notes for our many productions, Noël expressed an earnest hope that there would be people to carry on the tradition of excellence in the future. Noël gave us the wherewithal to do this by leaving a legacy of hard work and professionalism. He had a work ethic and sense of perfectionism that was far beyond the ordinary and we as a group have an obligation to carry this on.

The 2008 show 'All 4 one' was dedicated to Noël's memory.

We still miss Noël's wit, guidance and inspiration, but he proved by example, that despite any adversity he never gave up; nor should we. ​